Heating Make-Up Air in Wisconsin Finishing Shops
Bringing cold outside air into a paint booth or finishing area and warming it to working temperature takes serious burner capacity. In Wisconsin shops, the make-up air unit is often one of the largest gas users in the plant through the heating season, and an undersized burner shows up as cold booths and slow flash times. Double D installs air make up units sized for the temperature rise they actually face.
Discuss your installationTemperature rise drives the burner size
The burner has to heat the full airflow from the coldest expected outdoor temperature up to booth temperature. That temperature rise, multiplied by airflow, sets burner capacity. Undersized units cannot keep up on cold days.
Gas supply that keeps up
Large make-up burners draw a lot of gas. Gas service, meter capacity and pipe sizing have to deliver full demand without pressure dropping when other equipment fires.
- Meter and service capacity
- Pipe sizing for full burner demand
- Regulator and pressure checks
- Coordination with oven and heater demand
Protecting against freezing
Cold air passing through a unit when the burner is off can freeze sprinkler lines, water lines and anything nearby. Low-temperature limits shut down supply if discharge air gets too cold.
Holding booth temperature
Modulating burners and good temperature sensors hold steady booth temperature as outside conditions change. Stable temperature helps coatings flash and cure consistently.
Planning a booth or oven project in Wisconsin
Crews mobilize from Houston; Wisconsin is roughly 1,000 miles away, so equipment, panels and tooling are staged and shipped ahead of the install crew.
Manufacturing in Wisconsin is concentrated around Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, and Appleton. The sectors most likely to be specifying spray booths, blast rooms, powder systems and cure ovens there include heavy machinery and engines, paper products, food processing equipment, and metal fabrication.
Cold winters mean make-up air heaters are sized for sub-freezing intake, and booth or oven placement has to account for frost lines, snow loads on roof penetrations and winter slab work.
Frequently asked questions
Why is our booth cold in winter?
The make-up burner may be undersized for the temperature rise, or gas supply may be limiting it.
How is burner size calculated?
From airflow and the temperature rise from outdoor design temperature to booth temperature.
Do we need a low-temperature limit?
It is a good safeguard against freezing nearby piping.
Can our gas service handle a bigger unit?
Check meter capacity and pipe sizing against total plant demand.
Does booth temperature affect coating quality?
Yes. Stable temperature helps coatings flash and cure consistently.